Nuclear plan threatens food production, government report says   
SBS News
July 18 2024
Opposition Leader Peter Dutton announced the nuclear strategy a month ago, flagging nuclear reactors at coal power stations that have closed or are winding down.

Nuclear energy threatens Australia's food production with more than 11,000 farms near the Opposition's proposed reactor sites, the government says.

The farms are located within an 80km radius of the seven earmarked sites, according to a data analysis released by the federal government on Thursday morning.

Under international standards that radius is classified as an "ingestion exposure pathway" in which people may be exposed to radiation through contaminated food, milk and water after a nuclear leak.



What we know about Australia's only live nuclear reactor

US farmers in those zones must take on preventative measures in an emergency, such as providing livestock with separate feed and water, holding shipments and decontaminating produce.

"Based on international practice, farmers would need to take expensive steps during a nuclear leak and would need to inform their customers that they operate within the fallout zone," Agriculture Minister Murray Watt said in a statement.

Agriculture Minister Murray Watt told the Australian Global Food Forum on Wednesday that nuclear power needs more water than coal-fired energy and renewables.
"It's bizarre that the Nationals and Liberals are putting at risk our prime agricultural land like this, especially without the decency to explain it to farmers and consumers how they'd mitigate all the potential impacts."

Senator Watt also told the Australian Global Food Forum on Wednesday that nuclear power needs more water than coal-fired energy and renewables.

"One issue not yet considered in the nuclear debate is the fact that nuclear energy production is a thirsty endeavour," he told the industry crowd in Brisbane.

But Nationals leader David Littleproud said the comments were "scaremongering" and "hypocrisy".
Peter Dutton defends the Coalition's nuclear power plan



Peter Dutton defends the Coalition's nuclear power plan
The Opposition's policy is to use the existing entitlements from coal power plants at each site so water would not be taken from agriculture or communities, Mr Littleproud said.

"For him to talk about water security after this Labor government changed the Murray Darling Basin Plan to include water buybacks, as well as scrapping several new dam projects is hypocrisy of the highest order."

Opposition Leader Peter Dutton announced the nuclear strategy a month ago, flagging nuclear reactors at coal power stations that have closed or are winding down.
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Loy Yang Power Station in Victoria's Gippsland region, Callide and Tarong in Queensland, Port Augusta in South Australia, Collie in Western Australia, and Mount Piper and Liddell in NSW have all been earmarked.

Nuclear power will be on the agenda as the nation's agriculture ministers meet in Queensland on Thursday.

The ministers last met in March to confirm national priorities in biosecurity, drought, workforce, climate change, First Nations agriculture, trade and animal welfare.

How is food production around Chernobyl going?

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So modern nuclear reactors would never fail?

What if they were built on the cheap by an ignorant government who thought they could do it in 5 years starting with a workforce that has no experience building them?

freediver wrote on Jul 20^th, 2024 at 2:54pm:



The Chernobyl design had no containment element.

" Safety measures were ignored, the uranium fuel in the reactor overheated and melted through the protective barriers. RBMK reactors do not have what is known as a containment structure, a concrete and steel dome over the reactor itself designed to keep radiation inside the plant in the event of such an accident."

freediver wrote on Jul 20^th, 2024 at 2:54pm:


Wow. You start on Chernobyl and then onto cheap nuclear and a mythical inexperienced workforce, although there are plenty of experienced personnel in the world.

You are so silly.

lee wrote on Jul 20^th, 2024 at 3:06pm:


How many nuclear power plants has the Australian workforce built?

Are you aware of any failures in modern nuclear power plants?

How well thought through do you think the coalition's policy was when they publicly committed to building them and announced they could do it in 5 years?

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So why did you disagree with me when I said that the Australian workforce is inexperienced at building them? Or were you just pretending to disagree while mincing your words again?

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How good are you at tapdancing?

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So you cannot figure it out for yourself from the fact that they tried to con the Australian public into believing they could build them in 5 years?

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See, even Dutton thinks Dutton is an idiot.

My bad. That was you. 

lee wrote on Mar 10^th, 2024 at 4:35pm:

freediver wrote on Jul 20^th, 2024 at 12:31pm:

Chernobyl: Chapter VI. Agricultural and environmental impacts
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